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The No. 5 seed Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles topped No. 6 seed Jacksonville State 4-3 in 10 innings to capture the 2009 Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Championship on Saturday at Brooks Stadium.

This season marks the 30th time the event has been held. The tournament is taking place at historic Brooks Stadium in Paducah, Ky., marking the ninth consecutive year the event has taken place there.

Saturday, May 23
Game 9 - Jacksonville State 9, Murray State 3
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Game 10 - Tennessee Tech 4, Jacksonville State 3 (10 innings)
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JACKSONVILLE STATE 9, MURRAY STATE 3
PADUCAH, Ky. - Four runs in the second inning and a five-spot in the seventh inning was all the offense No. 6 seed Jacksonville State would need on Saturday, as the Gamecocks eliminated No. 2 seed Murray State by a score of 9-3 at the 2009 Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Championship at Brooks Stadium.

With the victory Jacksonville State (31-25) advances to the Championship Round to play No. 5 seed Tennessee Tech, a team they lost to 13-12 in 10 innings on Friday night. The Gamecocks will need to beat the Golden Eagles twice to claim their third OVC Tournament crown (2004, 2006).

The Gamecocks got on the board in the second when Sam Eberle homered to right field. Four batters later Todd Cunningham smashed a three-run home run to give Jax State a 4-0 advantage.

But Murray State (34-21-1) responded in the top half of the next inning as first baseman Wes Cunningham hit a three-run homer to cut the lead to just one.

The game remained tight until the seventh when Jax State pushed five more runs across the board as Cunningham hit another three-run home run to spark the Gamecocks.

The sophomore outfielder finished the day 2-for-4 with six RBI.

Freshman Tanner Freshour (3-3) picked up the win, pitching five innings in relief of starter Mitch Miller. Freshour allowed six hits and no runs while striking out six.

Lucas Allen (0-5) suffered the loss, allowing six earned runs in 6.1 innings of work.

TENNESSEE TECH 4, JACKSONVILLE STATE 3 (10 innings)
PADUCAH, Ky. - Tournament MVP A.J. Kirby-Jones singled in the game-winning run in the top of the 10th inning to lift Tennessee Tech to a 4-3 victory and the 2009 Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Championship at Brooks Stadium on Saturday.

Kirby finished the four-game tournament by hitting .500 (8-for-16) with seven runs scored, a double, three home runs, five RBI and a save on the mound. He also made several key defensive plays late in the championship game to seal the victory.

The win marked the third OVC Tournament Championship for Tennessee Tech (30-22-1), who last won the title in 2001 (the first year the tournament was held at Brooks Stadium).

It marked the first time the No. 5 seed had captured the OVC Tournament Championship.

The extra inning game was the fourth of the Championship, the most in a single championship in OVC Tournament history.

Alex Henry led off the game with a solo shot to put the Golden Eagles up 1-0. But Jacksonville State, who eliminated Murray State earlier in the day, looked to have its offense swagger back, scoring three times in the bottom of the first to take a 3-1 lead. Kyle Bluestein, Daniel Adamson and Sam Eberle all had RBI hits in the frame.

But after the first inning, Tech starter Chason Choate calmed down, allowing only two more hits over the next five innings. His offense also helped him out, adding two runs in the fifth inning – on an Evan Webb two-run home run – to tie the contest.

Choate would make way for All-Tournament Team selection Ben Burgess (1-2), who also played catcher and outfield in the tournament, who helped close the door. Burgess allowed only one hit over the four innings to pick up his first victory of the season. Burgess drove in seven RBI in the four games during the championship.

Jacksonville State got 5.1 innings of strong relief from Jordan Beistline, who allowed only three hits while striking out four. Closer Bill Henke (2-3) took his second loss in as many days, allowing two hits, including the game-winner by Kirby-Jones.

2009 OVC Baseball Championship All-Tournament Team
Wes Cunningham, Murray State
Kenton Parmley, Southeast Missouri
Sam Eberle, Jacksonville State
Steven Leach, Jacksonville State
Todd Cunningham, Jacksonville State
Kyle Bluestein, Jacksonville State
Chad Oberacker, Tennessee Tech
Casanova Donaldson, Tennessee Tech
A.J. Kirby-Jones, Tennessee Tech (MVP)
Ben Burgess, Tennessee Tech
Austin Lucas, Jacksonville State
Ryan Dennick, Tennessee Tech
Lee Henry, Tennessee Tech